Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy clash over Israel before debate

Indian American presidential aspirants Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy, who have both officially qualified for Wednesday’s Republican presidential debate in Milwaukee, clashed over support for Israel before their on-stage encounter.

Besides Haley, 51, the first Indian American to serve in a presidential cabinet as US ambassador to UN under former President Donald Trump and biotech entrepreneur Ramaswamy, 38, six others have also qualified for the debate, the Republican National Committee confirmed Monday night.

While Trump appeared to have met the party’s polling and fundraising thresholds, he won’t be on the stage, as he has refused to sign the RNC’s pledge to support the eventual nominee and announced he would skip the debate.

Other candidates who qualified and opted to participate are: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum; Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie; Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis; Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson; Former Vice President Mike Pence and Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, former Rep. Will Hurd of Texas, businessmen Perry Johnson and radio host Larry Elder were left out.

The debate will be broadcast on Fox News and Rumble, the online video and livestreaming website that’s a favorite of many conservatives.

Candidates had to meet the party’s polling and unique donor thresholds, as well as sign a pledge saying they’d support the eventual Republican nominee and not participate in any unsanctioned debates this cycle.

Those who struggled to make the first debate may have a steeper hill to climb to make the next one in September. While the unique donor threshold goes up only from 40,000 to 50,000, candidates will need to register 3% in a handful of qualifying polls, up from 1% for the first debate.

The majority of the field — including Trump, DeSantis, Scott, Haley, Christie and Ramaswamy — met the polling and donor criteria for the first debate with relative ease. But for others, hitting the thresholds proved more challenging, according to NBC.

Read more on the presidential race

Meanwhile, Haley blasted fellow Indian American contender Ramaswamy on Monday after the entrepreneur floated the prospect of phasing out US aid to Israel by 2028.

Ramaswamy billed his Middle East plan as the “Abraham Accords 2.0,” to include a bid to broker peace agreements between the Jewish state and more of its Arab neighbors, which he argued would lessen the need for US support.

“If we’re successful, the true mark of success for the US, and for Israel, will be to get to a 2028 where Israel is so strongly standing on its own two feet, integrated into the economic and security infrastructure of the rest of the Middle East, that it will not require and be dependent on that same level of historical aid or commitment from the US,” Ramaswamy told the Washington Free Beacon Sunday.

The current US aid package of $38 billion to Israel expires in 2028.

Ramaswamy also suggested on a podcast hosted by British actor and comedian Russell Brand last week that Israel received preferential treatment from Washington. “There’s no North Star commitment to any one country [in my administration], other than the United States of America,” Ramaswamy told Brand.

READ: As three Indian Americans vie for GOP presidential nomination, community weighs ideologies and policies (August 6, 2023)

“Vivek Ramaswamy is completely wrong to call for ending America’s special bond with Israel,” Haley stated sharply disagreeing with Ramaswamy.

“Support for Israel is both the morally right and strategically smart thing to do. Both countries are stronger and safer because of our iron-clad friendship. As president, I will never abandon Israel.”

“This is part of a concerning pattern with Vivek. Between abandoning Israel, abolishing the FBI, and giving Taiwan to China, his foreign policy proposals have a common theme: they make America less safe,” she added.

The Ramaswamy campaign dismissed Haley’s swipe, with a spokesperson telling The Post of Haley: “We wish her well on her future in corporate America’s boardrooms.”

Over the weekend, Ramaswamy attempted to amplify his support of Israel.

“We will not leave Israel hanging out to dry — ever. The centerpiece of my Middle East policy in Year 1 will be to consummate ‘Abraham Accords 2.0’ which will be good for the US and good for Israel,” he wrote on Instagram.

“If we can lead the way in helping Israel fully integrate into the economic and security infrastructure of the Middle East via Abraham Accords 2.0, it is better for everyone if Israel is truly able to stand on its own feet with support from partners across the Middle East that we diplomatically bring to the table.”

The RealClearPolitics polling average shows Ramaswamy in third place among Republican primary voters nationally with 7%, with Haley in fifth place with 3.3% support.